1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to call initiation, and more particularly to call initiation commands for a communication device.
2. Description of the Related Art
A communication device can be understood as a device provided with appropriate communication and control capabilities for enabling use thereof for communication with others parties. The communication may comprise, for example, communication of voice, electronic mail (email), text messages, data, multimedia and so on. A communication device typically enables a user of the device to receive and transmit communication via a communication system and can thus be used for accessing various applications.
A communication system, in turn, can be seen as a facility that enables communication sessions between two or more entities such as the communication devices, network entities and other nodes. In the simplest form a communication system comprises two communicating devices that are suitably configured for enabling the communication there between. In wider communication systems an appropriate access system allows communication devices to access to the communication system. An access to the communications system may be provided by means of a fixed line or wireless communication interface, or a combination of these user equipment and/or other nodes associated with the communication system.
A communication system typically operates in accordance with a given standard or specification which sets out what the various entities associated with the system are permitted to do and how that should be achieved. For example, the standard or specification may define if a communication device is provided with a circuit switched carrier service or a packet switched carrier service or both. Communication protocols and/or parameters which shall be used for the connection are also typically defined. For example, the manner how the communication device can access the communication system and how communication shall be implemented between the communication devices, the elements of the communication network and/or other communication devices is typically based on predefined communication protocols.
Communication systems proving wireless communication are known. These systems are typically referred to as mobile systems; although in certain systems the mobility may be restricted to substantially small areas. An example of the mobile systems is the public land mobile network (PLMN). Another example is a mobile system that is based, at least partially, on use of communication satellites. Mobile communications may also be provided by means of other types of systems, such as by means of wireless local area networks (WLAN) or short range radio or other wireless links.
In a typical mobile system a mobile communication device communicates via a station of the communication system, commonly referred to as a base station. A communication device may be in wireless communication with two or more stations at the same time. A communication device may also be configured to communicate on different carrier systems, i.e. may be adapted for operation in multi-radio environments.
A multi-mode or multi-radio communication device typically refers to terminal equipment adapted to operate in accordance with more than one communications standard and is thus capable for communication on at least two different carrier systems. An example of multimode-mode user equipment is a communication device that can be used for voice communication that is carried either on a circuit switched network or a packet switched network. Another example is a multi-mode mobile phone, for example a cellular phone that may communicate via at least one cellular system and at least one non-cellular system. Non-limiting examples of the cellular systems include 2nd generation (2G) cellular systems, for example the GSM and the 3rd generation (3G) cellular systems such as the 3GPP WCDMA. Examples of the non-cellular systems include short range links such as the short range radio link provided based on the Bluetooth™ protocols, various wireless local area networks (WLAN), local systems based on the Digital Video Broadcasting via Handheld Terminals (DVB-H) and ultra wide band (UWB) and so on.
A voice call may be carried by a circuit switched service or a packet switched service. For example, the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) has specified support for capabilities to have voice calls over the packet switched networks. An application thereof is known in public by the name Voice over IP (VoIP).
A user is typically enabled to choose if he is to have a circuit switched call or a packet switched call, such as a VoIP call. The user may wish to experience the use of the VoIP option to be as close to the circuit switched voice calls as possible. That is, the end user may expect that anything he can do with circuit switched voice calls he can also do with the VoIP. At least the initiation of a VoIP call instead of a circuit switched call should be as easy as possible.
A particular problem might occur when a user is controlling the call initiation via an external device, for example by means of a hands-free kit such as a headset. In such arrangements the external device needs to communicate appropriate call initiation commands to the communication device, for example a mobile phone. Current command interface specifications for the peripheral devices, however, are relatively limited and do not consider extensions such as selection of a VoIP voice call or selection of the carrier type at all. Instead, the current command mechanisms are designed for use with circuit switched voice calls only.
It is noted that the problem is not limited to devices for mobile communication systems, but may occur in any communication environment wherein a user may need to control the selection of the desirable carrier system at the call initiation stage.